Rod feeding machine with rod receiving grooved member movable to actuate rod feeding means



Oct. 14, 1952 H. GQDERLSTZ ROD FEEDING MACHINE WITH ROD RECEIVING GROOVE-D I MEMBER MOVABLE TO ACTUATE ROD FEEDING MEANS Filed April 6, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTO R jfznry 60411172 ATTOR N EY Oct. 14, 1952 H. GOERLITZ 2,613,851

ROD FEEDING MACHINE WITH ROD RECEIVING GROOVED MEMBER MOVABLE TO ACTUATE ROD FEEDING MEANS Filed April 6, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 NVENTOR TTORNEYS Oct. 14, 1952 H..GOERLITZ 2,613,861

ROD FEEDING MACHINE WITH ROD RECEIVING GROOVED MEMBER MOVABLE TO ACTUATE ROD FEEDING MEANS Filed April 6, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR ATTO N EYS Patented Oct. 14, 1 952 ROD FEEDING MACHINE WITH ROD RECEIV- ING GROOVED MEMBER MOVABLE TO ACTUATE ROD FEEDING MEANS Henry Goerlitz, New York, N. Y., assignor to Eberhard Faber Pencil Company, a corporation of New York Application April 6, 1946, Serial No. 660,281

14 Claims.

The invention relates to a machine for feeding rods into spaced .grooves in a part to receive the same. The machine relates particularly to the feeding of lead rods for pencils into the spaced grooves in slats which lead loaded slats are assembled and glued with a like slat to form pencil blanks.

In the making of pencils wood slats are made with spaced parallel grooves therein to receive lead rods. A pencil lead rod is fed into each groove of the slat, after which alike grooved slat having its grooved face coated with glue is positioned thereover and clamped together until the glue is dried. The slats may vary in width and carry anywhere from three to nine groovesalthough the number of grooves is immaterial and depends only upon the slat width. The glued blanks are then slit lengthwise and shaped to form separate pencils, each with a lead rod in the center thereof. The separated pencils may then be painted or otherwise finished as a saleable article.

It is an object of the invention to construct anew and novel rod feeding machine for feeding rods to a member having spaced grooves in the surface thereof. 7 v

Another object of the invention is to construct a rod feeding means for laying a rod in each spaced groove carried by a grooved member or slat in which the grooved members are fed into the rod feeding machine and a driving connection between the rod feeding means and. the grooved member is established by the rod itself. A still further object of the invention is to provide a method of feeding rods into spaced grooves in another member such as a slat or the like in which the rod feeding means is freely rotatable and a driving connection between the grooved member or slat and the freely rotatable feeding means is established through the rod itself engaging within a groove of the feeding means and a groove of the moving member.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

illustrating the construction in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional view through the feeding machine. I v

Figure 2 is a front view partly in section through the machine taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a plan view of the machine.

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Figure 2. I

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Figure 3.

The machine to be described herein is designed particularly to feed lead rods to slats [0, having spaced grooves ll therein each of which slats is glued to a corresponding slat to form a pencil 2 blank. The blanks are thereafter slit apart and shaped to form individual pencils. The machine however, is suitable for feedin rods of any form to grooved members or parts and is not limited to lead pencil rods and pencil slats.

The machine includes a hopper I4 having guideways l5 extending from the-bottom thereof. The hopper may have an oscillating plate I6 mounted upon a shaft I! for oscillating theplate. On the opposite side of the guideway or hopper from the oscillating plate [6 is a roller l8 mounted upon a shaft 19 which is rotated in a direction tending to move the lead rods upwardly. The mechanism described is intended to feed lead rods 20 into the guideway one at a time.

A suitable driving connection may be used to rotate the roller l8 and to oscillate the oscillating plate It. The means particularly shown includes a pulley 2| carried by the shaft I9,.which pulley is driven from a belt .22. The oscillated plate "5 may be oscillated by a cam 23 carried upon the shaft [9, which cam engages a lever 24 connected with a shaft I! to oscillate the shaft for the oscillating plate. The guideway l5 has a large opening or window 25 so that broken lead rods are removed from or fall out of the guideway. The hopper, guideway and associated mechanism provide means to lay or feed rods in the grooves of the grooved feeding means or wheel.

At the end or bottom of the guideway I5 is a grooved rod feeding or loading means which spaces the rods and feeds them to the grooved members or slats. Preferably the rod feeding means comprises a pair of spaced wheels 29 mounted in horizontal position upon a shaft 30. The spaced wheels 29 are in effect one feedin wheel. The wheels 29 have uniformly spaced grooves 3| in the periphery thereof and spaced apart a distance approximating, or the same as, the spacing of the grooves II in the slats. The rod grooves are less than the diameter or cross sectional dimension of the rod so that the latter projects above the periphery of the rod feeding means or wheels,-

nection between the same and the rest of the mechanism. The feeding wheels are turned or rotated in a manner which will be described hereinafter. Means are provided to retain the lead rods 20 in the grooves upon the periphery of the wheels 29. This means may be a guide 32 extending around asemi-circumference of the rod feeding wheels. The grooved wheels, therefore, provide means for feeding the lead rods in spaced relation to the slats or grooved members.

- The slats II] are fed. adjacent to the rod feeding means or wheels 29 and preferably underneath the wheels and upon a table or plate 35. Any suitable means may be used to feed the slats The rod feeding wheels '29 are freely rotatable in that there is no driving conbe used.

The machine is operated in a manner now to feeding wheel means.

3 to the feeding wheels the slat feeding means shown being a reciprocating type. The slats are loaded in a slat hopper 36 and are fed from the bottom thereof by a pusher plate 3'! which carries a slide plate 38 having grooves within which are received the slideways or guides 39. The slide plate 38 carries a pivot pin 40 which receives a connecting link 4|, the end of which is connected with a bell crank lever 42 pivoted upon a pin 43. The end of the bell crank lever is oscillated by a cam 44 which is connected with suitable drive means so that the bell crank 42 oscillates and thereby reciprocates the pusher plate 31. At the remote or retracted position of the pusher plate, aslat drops down in front thereof from the slat hopper and the pusher plate engages a side face thereof to eject the same from the hopper. Each slat engages the side edge of the preceding slat so that the slats are fed underneath the rod feeding means in succession. It

is clear that a continuous slat feeding means may be used if desired, however, with the rod feeding means being controlled or driven from the slats themselvesfa reciprocating slat feeding means with its discontinuous feeding of the slats, may

be described. The rod hopper is filled with lead rods 20 which drop down through the guideway I until they contact the feeding wheels 29. The feeding wheels are initially rotated by hand, and a. lead rod drops into each groove M as it passes beneath the guideway until a lead is ready to drop fromthe end of the guide 32. .Slats are now fed underneath the feeding wheels and a lead drops into the first groove II in the slat. The lead rod is therefore engaging both in the groove in the slat and the peirpheral groove 3| in the feeding wheel. The slats are projected to the left .as viewed in Figure 1 by the slat feeding meansso that the lead rod forms in-effect a gear tooth or driving connection between the slat and therod feeding means to move the same to the next rod feeding position or groove, the movement for feeding wheels being rotation of the latter. This interengagement of the lead rod between the slat or grooved member and the feedin wheels rotate the latter far enough so that a second lead rod drops into the next slat groove H so that this lead rod takes up the driving interengagement and continues the rotation of the Preferably the diameter of the feeding wheels is such that a driving connection effected by the lead rod occurs for a distance approximating the spacing between grooves, that is, when a lead rod drops into a groove in the slat at or adjacent the'end ofthe guide 32, driving inter-engagement is established and continues until, the leading edge of the grove 3| rises above the lead rod because of the rising groove in the periphery of the rotating wheel means.

The advantage of rotating the feeding wheel by the leadrodsthemselves will be pointed out. The grooves I I in each slat are uniformly spaced wlith respect to each other. The spacing between the grooves at each edge and the edge of the slatis greater however than one half the spacing between adjacent grooves in each slat. This increased spacing at the edgesis provided so that the edge may be cleaned off and smoothed in the slitting operation upon the pencil blanks. If the feeding wheels 29 had a positive driving mechanism it would be imperative therefore that the grooves on the periphery, of the feeding wheels be spaced correspondin to the increased spacing between grooves on adjacent slats and also means that the feed wheel must be driven in synchronism with the feeding of the slats. Since accurate slat dimensions are difficult to secure in production manufacturing, any variation in the groove to groove dimension between the last groove of one slat and the first groove of the next slat would introduce complications from unequal groove spacing between the slats and the rod feeding means.

With the construction described herein in which the feedin wheels are freely rotatable and are driven from the slats themselves through the agency of the lead rods engaging in the groove on the slat and on the periphery of the feeding wheels, the latter automatically adjusts itself to equally spaced groove approaches the loading point the lead rod balances on the corner for-a moment and then drops into the groove. Apparently as one groove passes diametrical center of the feeding wheel the forward point of the wheel groove drops back relatively to the point of contact with the lead since this point moves upwardly on the circumference of the rod. This automatically adjusts for the different slat groove spacing and the lead drops into its groove. Also if a lead rod happens not to be in a groove, the driving of the wheel continues nevertheless because the driving relation exists for the space of or approximately for the space of two leads. The diameter of the feeding wheel determines the period of engagement between the rods and the feeding wheel.

This construction simplifies materially the machine required to feed lead rods into grooves in the slats, assures proper lead feeding irrespective of varying slat dimensions, and permits reciprocating or discontinuous feeding of the slats. Since no drive mechanism need be provided for the feeding wheels, the grooves in the peripheral feedin wheels do not have to be carefully spaced from each other in order to provide for the greater spacing between end or edge grooves of adjacent slats.

Sometimes a lead rod will break in the guideway and-does. not fall out of the window 25. In such case the rod falls out at the bottom of the guideway. A guard 41 is therefore provided which extends between the feeding wheels '29 which catches such broken lead rods from the guideway and from the feeding wheels and prevents them from falling upon the moving slats I D. A similar guard 48 may be provided for leads which may fall out of the window 25 in the guideway.

The slats with the lead rods in the grooves are glued to a like slat to form the pencil blanks. These blanks are then cut or slit lengthwise to divide each pencil from the blank.

The invention is presented to fill a need for improvement in a rod feeding machine. It .is understood that various modifications in structure, as well as changes in mode of operation, assembly, and manner of use, may and often do occur to those skilled in the art, especially after benefiting from the teachings of aninvention. Hence, itwill be understood that this discolsure is illustrative of preferred means of embodyingthe invention in useful form by explaining the construction, operation and advantages thereof.

What is claimed is:

'1. A loading machine to feed rods into spaced for the grooved feeding means being a rod in a groove of a grooved member interengaging a groove in the grooved feeding means, means to retain the rods in the grooves as the grooved feeding means moves, means to place rods in the grooves in the grooved feeding means, and means to feed grooved members in the direction of movement of the grooved feeding means and adjacent to the grooved feeding means with the grooved face of the grooved member having a spacing from the grooved feeding means less than the projecting portion of the rod, each of said members being adapted to receive a rod in a groove therein and the freely movable grooved feeding'means being moved from a groove in the grooved members as the latter are moved adjacent to the grooved feeding means.

2. A loading machine to feed rods into spacedgrooves in a member such as a slat or the like in which the spaced grooves have a depth to retain a rod projecting above the face of the member comprising feeding mean having spaced grooves each of which receives a rod and has a depth to retain the same above the face of the feeding means, means mounting the feeding means for free movement,.means to retain the rods in the grooves as the feeding means moves, means to feed rods to the grooves in the feeding means, means to feed grooved members in the direction of movement of the feedingmeans and adjacent to the feeding means, and a rod moving into each groove in the member forming a driving connection between the grooved member and the feeding means to move the freely movable feeding means by the grooved members as they are moved adjacent thereto.

3. A loading machine to feed rods into spaced grooves in a member such as a slat or the like in which the spaced grooves have a depth to retain a rod projecting above the face of the member, comprising loading wheel means having spaced grooves in the periphery thereof each of which is adapted to receive a rod, means mounting the loading wheel means for free rotation and the sole driving connection with the loading wheel mean being a rod in a groove of the grooved member interengaging a groove of the loading wheel means, means to retain the rods in the grooves as the loading wheel means rotates,

means to feed rods to the grooves in the loading wheel means, and means to feed grooved slats in the direction of rotation of the loading wheel means and adjacent to the loading wheel means with the grooved face of the grooved member having a spacing from the loading wheelmeans less than the projecting portion of the rod, each of said slats being adapted to receive a rod into each groove therein to form a driving connection between the freely rotatable loading wheel means and the moving slats as they are moved adjacent to theloading wheel means.

4. A loading machine to feed rods into spaced grooves in a member such as a slat or the like in which the spaced grooves have a depth to retain a rod projecting above the face of the member, comprising horizontal loading wheel means having grooves in the periphery thereof uniformly spaced apart a distance corresponding to the groove of the loading wheel means,means extend ingto a point adjacent the bottom of the loading wheel means to retain the rods in the grooves as the-loadingwheel means rotates, means to place rods in the grooves in the loading wheel means, and means to feed grooved slats underneath the loading wheel means with the grooved face of the grooved member having a spacing from the loading wheel means less than the projecting portion of therod, each grooved slat beingadapted to receive a rod into each groove therein to form a driving connection between the freely rotatable loading wheel means and the moving slat as they are pushed under .the loading wheel means.

5. A loading machine to feed rods into spaced grooves'in a member such as a slat or the like in I which the spaced grooves have a depth to retain grooved member interengaging a groove of the loading Wheel means, means extending to a point adjacent the bottom of the loading wheel means to retain the rods in the grooves as the loading wheel means rotates, means to feed rods to the grooves in the loading wheel means, a slat hopper adjacent the loading wheel means, and reciprocating means to feed grooved slats from the slat hopper underneath and adjacent to the loading wneel means with the grooved face of the grooved member having a spacing from the loading wheel means less' than the projecting portion of the rod, each grooved slat being adaptedto receive a rod into each groove therein to form a driving connection between the freely rotatable loading wheel means and the moving slats as they are pushed under the wheel means. 1

6. A loading machine to feed rods into spaced grooves in a member such as a slat or the like in which the spaced grooves have a depth to retain a rod projecting above the face of themember, comprising loading wheel means including a pair of relatively narrow spaced wheels having grooves in the periphery thereof each of which is adapted to receive a rod and has a depth to retain the rod above the periphery of the loading wheel means, means mounting the loading wheel means so that it is freely rotatable and the sole driving connection with the loading wheel means being a rod in a groove of the grooved member interengaging a groove of the loading wheel means, a guard means positioned between the spaced wheels, means extending to a point adjacent the bottom of the loading wheel means to retain the rods in the grooves as the loading wheel means. rotates, means to'feed rods to the grooves in the loading wheel means, and means to feed grooved slats underneaththe loading wheel means with. the grooved face of the grooved member having a spacing from the loading wheel means less than. the projecting portion ofthe rod, each grooved slat being adapted to receive a rod into each. groove therein to form'a driving connection to turn the freelyrotatable loading wheel means :by the moving slats .as theyare pushed under'the loading wheel means. i

'7. vA loading machine to feed rods intoispaced grooves in a member such as a slat or the'like .in. which thespaced grooves have adepth-toretain a rod projecting above the face of the member,..comprising loading wheel means having uniformly spaced grooves in the periphery thereof each of which is adaptedtoreceive a'rod, means -mounting the loading wheel means for .free rotation and the sole driving connection with the loading wheel means being a rodin a groove, of the -gr,oove,d'member ,interengaging a groove of the loading wheel means, means extending to a point I adjacent the bottom of the loading wheel means to, retain the rods in the grooves as the wheel means rotates, means to feed rodsto the grooves :in they loading wheel means, means to feed grooved aslats underneath the loading wheel means with :the grooved face of the grooved member having a spacing from the loading wheel means less than "the projecting portion of the rod, each, grooved slat being adapted to receive a rod into each groove therein to form a driving connection between the freely rotatable loading wheel means and the moving slats as they are pushed under the loading wheel means, and the loading wheel .means having a diameter in relation to the-spaced grooves and the cross-section of a rod to turn the loading wheel means a distance approximating the spacing between the grooves.

8. A loading machine to feed rods into spaced 1 grooves in a member such as a slat or the like in which the spaced grooves have a depth to retain a rod projecting above the face of the member comprising loading wheel means having uniformlyspaced grooves in the periphery thereof each of which is adapted to receive a rod and has a depth to retain the rod above the periphery of the loading wheel means, means mounting the loadingwheel means for free rotation andthe sole driving connection with the loading wheel means being a rod in a groove of the grooved member interengaging a groove of the loading wheel means, means extending to a point adjacent the bottom .of the loading wheel means to retain the .-rods in the grooves a the loading wheel means rotates, means to feed rods to the grooves in the loading wheel means, and reciprocating means to feed grooved slats underneath the loading wheel means with the grooved face of the grooved member having a spacing from the loading wheel means less than the projecting portion of the rod, eachgrooved slat being adapted to receive acrod into-each groove therein to form a driving connection between the freely rotatable loading wheel means and the moving slats as they are pushed under-the loading wheel means.

9. A loading machine to feed rods into spaced grooves in a member such as a slat or thelike in which the spaced grooves have a depth to retain a rod projecting above the face of the member, comprising loading wheel means having uniform- .lyspaced grooves in the periphery thereof each of which is adapted to receive a rod and has a-depth .to'retain the rod above the periphery of the loading wheelmeans, means mountingthe loading wheel means for free rotation and the sole driving connection with the loading wheel means being a rod in a groove of the grooved'member interengaging a groove of the loading wheel means, means extending to a point adjacent the bottom of the loading wheel means to retain the rods in the grooves as the loading wheelmeans rotates, .means to feed rods to the grooves in the loading wheel means,:a slat hopper in front of the loading wheel means, and reciprocating -means j to zffeed grooved slats from .the :bottom of thehopper underneath the loading wheel means with :the .grooved face of :the grooved member having a spacing from the. loadingwheel meanslessithan 'the projecting portion of "the rod, each :grooved slat .being adapted'to receive a rodiintoreach groove'therein to form'a driving connection :be-

tween the freely rotatable loading wheel means ing wheel meansymeans mounting the loading wheel means so that it is freely rotatable and the sole driving connection with the loading wheel means being a rod in a groove of thegrooved member interengaging a groove of the loading wheel means,'means extending to a point adjacent the-bottom of the loading wheel means to retain the rods in the grooves as the loading wheel means rotates, and means to feed rods to the-grooves in the loading wheel means including spaced'guides having a substantial opening therebetween to permit broken I'ods'to drop out thereof, means-to feed grooved slats underneath the loadingwheel means with the grooved face of the grooved member having a spacing from the loading'wheel means less than 'theprojecting portionof the rod, each groovedslat being adapted to receive a rod into each groove'therein'to form adriving connection between the freely rotatable loading wheel means and the moving slats as they 'ar pushed under the loading wheel means.

' 11. A loading machine to feedrods into'spaced grooves in a member such as a slat or the like,

comprising grooved feeding means having spaced grooves each of which receives arod and'retains the'same projecting above the face of the grooved feeding means, means mounting the grooved feeding means for free movement, -means to retain the rods in the grooves as "the grooved "feeding means moves,*means to place'rodsinthe grooves in'the grooved feeding means, at least one grooved member having at least one groove in the surface thereof of a depth to retain the prod projecting above the'surface and adapted 'to have a rod placed in each groove, means to feed the grooved member adjacent to the grooved feeding means, and "a 'rod moving into each groove in the member forming a driving connection between-the grooved member and the grooved'feeding 'meansto move the freely-movable grooved feeding means by the grooved membersas they are-moved'adjacent thereto.

12. A method of feeding rods into spaced grooves in slatsor the like comprising moving the slats in side by side relation,,feedingthe rods ,to the'spacedrgrooves in theslats', and driving the rod feeding means by the movement of the slats and the interengagement between thelatter and the rod feeding means effected by the .rod engaging in a groove in theslatand the rod engaging the rod feedingmeans.

1'3. A method of "feeding rods into spaced grooves in slats or the likecomprisingmoving the slats. inside by side relation, spacing the rods in grooves spaced corresponding to the spaced grooves in the slat, feeding the rods into the grooves of the slats, and driving the rod feeding means by the movement of the slats and the interengagement between the latter and the rod feeding means effected by a rod engaging in a groove in the slat and a groove in the rod feeding means.

14. A 'method of feeding rods into spaced grooves in slats or the like comprising moving the slats in side by side relation, spacing the rods in grooves spaced corresponding to the spaced grooves in the slats, feeding the rods into the grooves of the slats, driving the rod feeding means by the movement of the slats and the interengagement between the latter and the rod feeding means efiected by the rod engaging in 10 a groove in the slat and the rod feeding means, and separating the driving interengagement of each rod between the slat-and rod driving means after engagement for a; distance approximating that of the groove spacing.

/ HENRY GOERLITZ.

REFERENCES CITED The followingreferences are of record in the 

